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Your team is neck deep in water and can’t unplug the drain, but welcome back anyway.

The Edmonton Oilers, who return from the All-Star break in last place, 10 points out of a playoff spot with 32 games to go, will at least have Connor McDavid back in the lineup when they launch their quest for a stretch drive miracle.

McDavid, who’s been out since Nov. 3 with a broken collarbone, will make the second debut of his rookie season when he lines up against the Columbus Blue Jackets Tuesday night at Rexall Place.

“I’m just excited to play again,” said the 19-year-old, who will centre a line with Jordan Eberle and Benoit Pouliot. “It feels like my first game all over again.”

It will be his 14th National Hockey League game. McDavid was just getting his NHL footing, putting up 11 points in the eight games, before he got tangled up with a pair of Philadelphia Flyers and crashed into the end boards at Rexall Place.

He missed 37 games and realizes he has a lot of catching up to do and not much time to do it. He hopes to be as close to game ready as is possible for someone who hasn’t played a game in 90 days.

“It definitely feels a lot like September again,” said McDavid, who spent the All-Star break practising with the Bakersfield Condors, the Oilers’ American Hockey League affiliate.

Still, 75 or 80% of McDavid is probably more than good enough to start making an impact on the Oilers again.

“I definitely feel a lot better than I think some of the guys who took eight days off (for the All-Star break). I felt good today, I felt good last week and I’m excited to go.

“Legs are there, hands are there, it’s just game speed and getting that timing back.”

Head coach Todd McLellan didn’t seem at all concerned about rust — at least not on McDavid.

“The way he skated today I’m not as worried about Connor as I am about the other 19 guys on the ice,” he laughed. “He’s ready to go.”

What should we expect in the first few games from the wunderkind?

“Timing and condition and reading and reacting on the ice is not an easy thing to do, especially coming in as a 19-year-old halfway through the season,” said McLellan. “The one advantage Connor might have is the whole league took a bit of a break and we might all be coming back rusty.

“But like I said, based on how he skated today and knowing the work he’s put in, I’m not worried.”

McDavid is confident that three months of recovery time were enough to eliminate any risk of re-injury and doesn’t believe he will shy away from contact.

McDavid has been taking contact in practice, snapping one-timers and testing the injury at every turn. It’s all systems go. No pain, no range-of-motion problems. Nothing but an elite level collarbone.

“The car has been test driven for quite a while,” McLellan said. “It’s ready to go out on the race track.”

As for the risk of re-injury, or the psychological damage that comes from a violent, bone-breaking tumble into the boards, McDavid is confident that three months of recovery time were more than enough to eliminate both.

“The doctors wouldn’t let me play if I wasn’t 100%,” he said. “You have to keep that in the back of your mind. You know that you’ve done everything possible to come back and be 100% healthy again. I have nothing but faith in the doctors. They were telling me when it’s safe to play and it’s safe to play.”

His return provides an emotional boost for his teammates, who went 14-18-5 with their franchise player out of the lineup.

“He was driving our team, he was the energizer guy when he got hurt,” McLellan said. “Throw Connor into the mix and I think it’s exciting.”

The Oilers will need to overtake Calgary, Vancouver, Anaheim and Arizona to catch a post-season berth. They’ll need to go 23-8-1 in the final 32 just to reach 90 points. Calgary took the final spot with 97 points last year.

So it’s not looking good.

Still, McDavid believes he and the Oilers have the potential to do something special in the final 10 weeks of the season.

“I don’t think anyone feels out of it by any means,” he said. “Everyone feels good after the break. Excited, refreshed and ready to go.”

robert.tychkowski@sunmedia.ca

Twitter.com/Sun_Tychkowski

As Advertised in the Edmonton SUN

Edmonton Oilers have McDavid back

Welcome back, kid.
Your team is neck deep in water and can’t unplug the drain, but welcome back anyway.
The Edmonton Oilers, who returned from the All Star break in last place, 10 points out of a playoff spot with 32 games to go,